yea thats my biggest concern is what kind of shape the plastics are in. who makes the guards for these? I would definatley do that. I made a quick search of ebay, and notoced there are not a big source of used oem parts like more common Jap bikes. That is a concern sometimes. Though I think ebay worldwide would prob be a better source? I go and see it in the morning and test-drive it. Is there any quirks or important things to look for on the TA specifically (like weak frame points , engine weakness's and such) the owner tells me it has a slight valve cover leak, on most bikes, thats not a big deal, but not sure on this one. I'll keep all posted. Ive heard also the brake systems on the TA suck too, my biggest concern is tthe rear drum. Ive read you can change out the swingarm from an africa twin and do a disk brake setup ?

Click to expand...

Might want to check the front sprocket shaft splines for wear. Seems some TAs ,for whatever reason, have unusual wear. Real PITA to change that shaft. Looks like it's missing it's skid plate. Mas335 had some of his TA parts for sale, if there's any left.

Hey all Im looking at a used 89 Transalp locally, I go to see it on Friday. The owner says everything works, decent shape, 31,000 miles on the odometer. he's asking 2,200 OBO USD. Ive seen pics of it and it looks good, im just hesitant to know if parts are available in the US for decent prices. I had a bad experience with an NX250 a few years ago and how a few minor part that broke the bank. Any input would be great

The smartest thing you could do is bring someone along who is familiar with Transalps and let them evaluate it for you. Most all sellers claim their Transalp is in excellent condition but I sure find plenty on these 23 year old bikes that at the least is not up to date service wise. If you don't know what you don't know then the bike must be in excellent condition right?.

Since finding someone who is familiar with these bikes is unlikely perhaps then bringing along a knowledgeable mechanic would be your best bet.

I can give you a long list of things to look for but it is no substitute for basic understanding of these bikes. Just use a critical eye over the entire bike, check the oil first, is it clean, is there any even on the dip stick, you check it with the eingine warmed and in a vertical position, not on the side stand.

Check the chain for free play, it should have about 1 3/8" free play, if it is tight then the coutershaft wear might me a legitimate concern and something to take a more serious look at. The bike should start very easy from a dead cold engine. The over grossly exaggerated concerns about the CDI failure should not stop you from buying a Transalp. People seem to forget that many of these bikes still have thier original 23 year old ignition modules, of course they will go bad but replacments are easy to find and I have not heard of any early failures once they are replaced.

The basic test is of course riding the bike but since you have no reference point you are at a disadvantage. It should run very smooth with no outstanding issues such as noises, knocking sounds, transmission should shift smoothly, test all the electrical switches for proper functions.

Size up the seller, did he buy it just to resell, has he owned it a while, question him on the service history, does he sound like he knows what he is talking about? Ask him if he replaced the spark plugs, if he says he replaced both of them then he does know much about his Transalp, they have 4 spark plugs.

For a well kept Transalp with 31K miles it should feel like a new bike. Beware if the original clutch is still in there then you can count on being the guy who will replace it.

Thanks for all the input, I will keep everyone posted after I look at it. the owner told me the skid plate was missing and he rebuilt the fr brakes and everything works as it should so I will see. I have a D650 i ride the shit out of, but want to find a bike for some longer road trips but still have the abilty to back road it a bit. Im for sure gonna keep the DR, I love it.

Well I checked it out, everything worked as it should, the brakes for sure needed attention. the 2 side fairings the lower tabs were broken and held on with wire. The frount dash didnt quite line up properly. had a small rear valve cover leak. pretty decent amount of corrosion around the valve stems, original spark plugs, he has the oem skid plate, and a few receipts for some brake work, oil looked clean. the carbs were gonna need a rebuild, it fired right up and idled decent but you could tell they had some hesitation. The good parts now.....The motor and tranny sounded tighter than any machine ever heard, ecxept the Vstrom. gears shifted perfectly, and motor made no noise whatsoever. 31,000 on the odometer. brand new tires too. I had to pass, as Im kinda anal and It was turn key, just not my turn key. I'll have to just keep on looking for a more long distance dual sport, I can only go about 150 miles on the DR, before im crippled! If anyones looking for a decent project, hes asking 2300 but would prob take 1800. Im headed to atlanta on Monday and could haul it up for someone along the way.......

I just PM'd this to Jim Rowley because it seems he may have already done something similar, but I will post the question here too, maybe it will help someone else or someone may have some expertise to lend....

I picked up a set of forks off a 2001 KTM EXC 300 (47mm) for cheap, and I am trying to mount them on my '89 TransAlp. I believe that you have KTM forks on your AT/TA and I am wondering what triple clam you used. The stock KTM offset seems to be 20mm but the TA seems to have closer to a 26mm offset.

I spoke with Billet Racing Products (in C-Springs) and they only offer 20mm top clams (for use with the stock KTM bottom clamp) and if I want both top and bottom so I can get the rubber mounted bars and then custom manufacture the center stem and press it in their bottom clamp and make a bushing for the top clamp to tighten on the smaller stem they only offer 18mm offset.

I also talked to Gary over at Emig Racing, he can customize the whole thing with the same offset but it will be expensive. He thought that going down to even a 20mm offset on the forks is a very bad idea and would make it too twitchy. Another option is rather that custom designing from scratch I could get the 24mm offset KTM triple clamps and that he already makes and have them customized with a smaller stem.

Anyone have any opinions on this? I am not worried about the caliper mount and the ignition mount or fender at this time, the steering stops are more of a factor but I can always weld on the steel frame, I can deal with those small details later.

******************************************

Jim kindly and quickly messaged me back, it sounds like he used the 20mm offset on the KTM tripple clamp (yoke), and didn't notice it to be twitchy. It sounds like he also had a Scott's staring dampener too.

.......................actually he doesn't except once when.....well, we won't talk about that.

In case you haven't already considered it, you might measure exactly where the actual axle centerline is on the KTM forks. It may be different than the TA fork and make your offset measurements not so scary.

Don't worry Jim, you weren't the only one who crashed on that ride... I remember a certian BMW that took some Oregon soil home to Colorado. Besides if you don't crash once in a while while off road you're probably not trying hard enough..... Speaking from my own experience I have found this to be true. I may have crashed once or twice since then.

Hey guys, I'm rebuilding my carbs and am looking for some new jet size recommendations. I'm thinking of leaving in the stock #120 main jet and replacing the #38 slow jet with a #40. The engine and exhaust are stock. I usually buy from Jets R Us but they don't have a listing for a TransAlp but I'm sure they cross reference to other bikes. Does anyone know the Keihin slow jet part # or what bike uses the same carbs?